Four-time national champion Christy Leach was named as Stetson's second lacrosse head coach on June 23.

“Christy Leach understands what it takes to be successful in the classroom and on the playing field,” said Altier. “She has played for, and coached with, the top programs in the country and will bring this experience to Stetson. I look forward to watching her lead the Stetson Lacrosse program into the future.”

Leach is a 2008 graduate of Northwestern where she helped lead the Wildcats to four consecutive national championships as a player. She has spent the last four seasons as the first assistant with the Buckeyes, helping guide OSU to a combined 42-30 record and a spot in the 2014 NCAA Tournament.

"First, I would like to thank Ohio State Head Coach Alexis Venechanos for her continuous support and guidance the last four years,” said Leach. “I would also like to thank Ohio State Director of Athletics/Vice President Gene Smith and Assistant Athletics Director Janine Oman for their leadership over the past years.

"I'm really excited and can't wait to get started. I'm thrilled for the opportunity to build the program and put Stetson Lacrosse on the map. It's exciting that we already have great student-athletes in place, and it is a great opportunity at a unique university. I want to thank Athletics Director Jeff Altier for giving me the opportunity to lead the Stetson Lacrosse program."

In her role as first assistant at Ohio State, Leach administered and organized all aspects of recruiting, while supervising the rest of the coaching staff, in addition to developing tactics and in-game strategies. Over the last four seasons, Ohio State was consistently ranked in the Top 20, including a No. 10-ranking during the 2014 season. The Buckeyes were 13-7 last season, finishing as runner-up in the American Lacrosse Conference.

Prior to her time at OSU, Leach spent one season (2009) as an assistant at the University of Cincinnati, serving as defensive coordinator for the Bearcats.

A decorated student-athlete, Leach (nee Finch) helped lead the Wildcats to four straight national championships from 2005 to 2008. Finch was named as the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) National Defensive Player of the Year in 2007 and 2008, earning first-team All-America honors in each season. Northwestern posted an 83-3 overall record and was a perfect 43-0 at home during her career.

As a senior Leach was a finalist for the Tewaaraton Trophy, given annually to the top male and female collegiate lacrosse players in the country. She received both the Big Ten Medal of Honor and the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award in 2008.

The fact that Stetson’s lacrosse program is still in its infancy, having begun play in 2013, attracted Leach to the Hatters. It also didn’t hurt that Stetson seemed pretty familiar.

“As I did more about research about Stetson, I found that it reminded me of Northwestern in that it’s a smaller, private school in a great location. Florida lacrosse is growing, and I’m excited to have an opportunity to be a part that growth.”